1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an inspection apparatus for a light emitting diode (LED) and an inspection method using the same, and more particularly, to an inspection apparatus for determining inferiority of an LED by inspecting appearance and emission characteristics of the LED and an inspection method using the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
At first, a light emitting diode (LED) package had primarily been used for signaling. Recently, the LED package is applied more widely, for example, to lighting devices and a light source of a backlight unit (BLU) of a mobile phone or of a large-area display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD). A demand for the LED is increasing since it has a relatively low power consumption and long lifespan compared to general bulbs or fluorescent lamps. As the demand increases, production of the LED is rapidly increasing. Consequently, a rate of defects occurring in the LED is also increasing. Therefore, prior to the LED being distributed to consumers, an inspection of an appearance and emission characteristics, so called photo luminescence (PL) characteristics, of the LED is performed.
A vision inspection using the naked eye or using an apparatus has been performed to prevent distribution of an LED having various external defects such as an external damage, contamination, and the like, to consumers. However, since the emission characteristics cannot be inspected by the vision inspection, a dedicated inspection for the emission characteristics is necessary.
An inspection of the emission characteristics may be performed by a microscope including an ultraviolet (UV) lamp. Here, the microscope controls light being emitted from the UV lamp, by mechanically adjusting a shutter. However, use of the mechanical shutter operation may hinder high-speed inspection of the emission characteristics. In addition, the lifespan of the apparatus may be reduced while the UV lamp increases initial expenses and maintenance expenses.